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No Air Conditioning - But You Can Still Keep Cool

Pauline Kenny

Most Italian vacation rentals do not have air conditioning for those hot, humid summer days, but there are ways to keep your house or apartment cool.

Tips for keeping cool

  • Keep your house or apartment cool the way the Italians do - close the windows and window shutters when you go out in the morning. This stops the sun and hot air from coming in and keeps the house cool.
  • On the very hot days, take full advantage of the afternoon siesta. The villages close up and everyone rests from about 2pm to 5pm. The Italians seem to close their windows and shutters during siesta, to keep it cool, but I love to have the windows open for a nice breeze.
  • If you are going in the height of summer, try to get a place with a pool. After a morning of exploring and a nice lunch, an afternoon swim is very refreshing.

If you go later in the year, September or October, you will get cooler weather, but you may also get lots of rain and you can still run into hot, humid days.

Italian Windows and Shutters

Window shutters. Bellevista in Celle sul Rigo. 06/00

Italian windows usually have attached shutters. The windows are usually a pair of vertical opening windows with solid wood or slatted wood shutters. These shutters can be part of the window on the inside. You close the window and then close the shutter over the inside of the glass (as in this photo). Or they can be large solid wood or slatted wood shutters on the outside of the house. If they are slatted wood, you can close the shutters for privacy and to keep out the sun, but leave the windows open for fresh air.

Many vacation rentals do not have screens on the windows. When you keep all the windows open for that cooling breeze, the bugs fly right in. Keep the lights off in your bedroom, so the bugs are not attracted. Many people burn mosquito coils, but I so not like the idea of subjecting myself to the chemicals in the coils.

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